Integrated circuit intercoupling component with heat sink

ABSTRACT

An intercoupling component (e.g., socket or adapter) is provided for increasing the dissipation of heat generated within an integrated circuit (IC) array positioned within the intercoupling component, while maintaining a relatively low profile. The intercoupling component includes a heat sink positioned within the package support member, and having an upper surface in contact with a lower surface of the integrated circuit package disposed within the package support member. The package support member includes contact terminals disposed within associated openings of the package for electrically connecting the contacting areas of the integrated circuit package to the corresponding connection regions of the substrate. The openings extend from an upper surface to an opposite lower surface of the support member and are located in a pattern corresponding to a pattern of the connection contacts. The heat sink may be configured to be removable and replaceable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to removing heat from integrated circuit (IC)array packages.

As the densities of integrated circuits (e.g., microprocessors, gatearrays, ASICs) continue to increase, the size of the packages used tohouse the circuits continue to shrink. These smaller, higher performingintegrated circuits generate tremendous amounts of heat which isrequired to be dissipated. Thus, externally mounted heat sinks withprofiles having large surface areas are typically mounted on the ICpackages. In some cases, the size of the heat sink mounted to the ICpackage can dwarf the size of the package itself.

IC packages are either connected directly to circuit boards, or throughadapters or sockets. Adapters and sockets are described in AdvancedInterconnections Catalog No. 14-A (available from 5 Energy Way, WestWarwick, R.I. 02893). In general, they consist of a glass epoxy framehaving pins which are used to electrically connect a PC board with an ICor other electrical component.

Adapters are used to permanently convert one type of package to another.For example, a ball grid array (BGA) package having rounded solder ballcontacts may be soldered to an adapter array having terminals pins,thereby converting the BGA package to a pin grid array (PGA) package.

Sockets, on the other hand, are used to allow particular IC packages tobe interchanged without permanent connection to a circuit board. Morerecently, sockets for use with PGA, BGA and LGA packages have beendeveloped to allow these packages to be non-permanently connected (e.g.,for testing) to a circuit board.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention features an intercoupling component (e.g., socket oradapter) for increasing the dissipation of heat generated within anintegrated circuit (IC) array package positioned within theintercoupling component, while maintaining a relatively low profile. Theintegrated circuit array package also provides a reliable, non-permanentand low-loss electrical interconnection between electrical contactingareas of the IC array package and connection regions of a substrate(e.g., printed circuit board). The term "integrated circuit arraypackage" is intended to mean those packages, including PGA (pin gridarray), PQFP (plastic quad flat pack), BGA (ball grid array) and LGA(land grid array) packages. The term "substrate" is intended to mean anybase member having electrical contact areas including printed circuitboards, IC chip substrates or the packages supporting such chipsubstrates.

In one aspect of the invention, the intercoupling component includes aheat sink, removable and replaceable within a package support member,having a surface in contact with a surface of the IC array package whichis also disposed within the package support member. The package supportmember includes contact terminals disposed within associated openings ofthe package for electrically connecting the contacting areas of the ICarray package to the corresponding connection regions of the substrate.The openings extend from an upper surface to an opposite lower surfaceof the support member and are located in a pattern corresponding to apattern of the connection contacts.

In one embodiment, of the invention the surfaces of the heat sink and ICarray package in contact with each other are the upper and lowersurfaces of the heat sink and IC array package, respectively. Otherembodiments of this aspect of the invention may include a pivotingmechanism to allow the upper surface of the heat sink to maintainflat-to-flat contact with a lower surface of the integrated circuitpackage. The pivoting mechanism, in essence, compensates for the lack ofcoplanarity between upper and lower surfaces of the IC package and anyirregularities on those surfaces. Thus, surface-to-surface contactbetween the heat sink and IC package is maximized, thereby improvingheat transfer therebetween.

An intercoupling component having this arrangement is dual-purposed inthat the component serves to reliably interconnect (either temporarilyor permanently) the IC package to a printed circuit board whilesupporting a removable and replaceable heat sink within the component.The ability to remove and replace the heat sink facilitatesinterchanging heat sinks whose size and shape may differ on the basis ofthe operating characteristics (e.g., power level) of the integratedcircuit placed within the package support member of the intercouplingcomponent.

In another aspect of the invention, the intercoupling component includesa heat sink positioned within a package support member and the pivotingmechanism to allow the upper surface of the heat sink to maintainflat-to-flat contact with a lower surface of the integrated circuitpackage. The package support member includes contact terminals disposedwithin associated openings of the package for electrically connectingthe contacting areas of the IC array package to the correspondingconnection regions of the substrate. The openings extend from an uppersurface to an opposite lower surface of the support member and arelocated in a pattern corresponding to a pattern of the connectioncontacts.

Embodiments of both aspects of the invention may include one or more ofthe following features. The package support member includes a centralregion within which the heat sink is positioned with the openingsdisposed along an outer periphery of the central region.

A lower surface of the heat sink includes a projecting member and theupper surface of the support member includes a depression sized andshaped to receive the projecting member. In one embodiment, thedepression is concave-shaped and the projecting member is rounded. Thisarrangement provides a ball and socket for allowing the heat sink toswivel and tilt with respect to the contacting surface of the ICpackage.

The intercoupling component further includes a retaining memberpositioned to apply a downward force on the integrated circuit package.The retaining member includes a second, upper heat sink having a surfacecontacting an upper surface of the IC package. This arrangement,provides upper and lower heat sinks which "sandwich" the IC package sothat a greater amount of heat can be dissipated from the IC package. Arigid member having peripheral sidewalls is positioned between theretaining member and integrated circuit package. The peripheralsidewalls contact peripheral regions of the integrated circuit package.With this arrangement, stress applied to the body portion of the ICpackage is relieved by conveying the downward force applied by theretaining member to the peripheral sidewalls contacting the peripheralregions of the IC package 12. The package support member includes atleast one aperture for providing air flow to the lower surface of theheat sink.

The intercoupling component includes an electrically insulative locatorsheet (e.g., polyimide) including an aperture extending therethroughfrom an upper surface to an opposite lower surface of the locator sheet.The aperture is positioned and sized to engage an upper peripheralportion of the heat sink. The electrically insulative locator sheetincludes openings extending therethrough and located in a patterncorresponding to a pattern of the contact terminals. The openings aresized to allow the contact terminals to pass through the upper and lowersurfaces of associated openings, whereby the contact terminals arealigned with associated connection regions of the substrate.

The contact terminals each include a socket body having an upper endwith an opening and a lower end configured to contact the correspondingconnection region of the printed circuit board. Each contact terminalsfurther include a pin having an upper end adapted to contact theelectrical contacting area of the IC package and a lower end configuredto be inserted within the opening of the socket body. The pins aredisposed within holes of an electrically insulative support member,thereby providing an adapter assembly received by a socket assemblywhich supports the socket bodies. A contact spring may be disposedwithin a first end of the opening of the socket body to receive andapply a frictional force sufficient to retain the lower end of the pinwithin the opening of the socket body. A resilient member can also bedisposed within a second, opposite end of the opening, to apply, to thelower end of the pin and in response to a downward force applied to thepin, an upward force sufficient to overcome the frictional force of thecontact spring.

Other features of the invention will be apparent from the followingdescription of the preferred embodiments and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded, somewhat diagrammatic, isometric view of anintercoupling component assembly, an integrated circuit package, heatsink, and hold-down assembly positioned over a printed circuit board.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of a portion of the intercouplingcomponent assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the insulative support member of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of an enlarged portion of theintercoupling component assembly of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged version of a portion of a male terminal pin usedwithin the intercoupling component assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a top view of the polymeric sheet layer of FIG. 2.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged version of a portion of the lower heat sink of theintercoupling component assembly of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 8A-8C are cross-sectional side views illustrating the operation ofthe intercoupling component assembly.

FIG. 9 is an alternative embodiment of an intercoupling componentassembly.

FIG. 10 is another alternative embodiment of an intercoupling componentassembly.

DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a socket converter assembly 10 forintercoupling an IC package 12 to a printed circuit board 14 is shown.In this embodiment, IC package 12 is in the form of a BGA package havinga number of rounded solder balls 22 (FIG. 4) attached to contacts on theundersurface of the package. Socket converter assembly 10, which servesas an intercoupling component, includes a package support member in theform of an electrically insulative member 16 for supporting convertersocket terminals 18, each of which is press-fit within a correspondingone of an array of holes 20 (FIG. 3) in the insulative member. The arrayof holes 20 are provided in a pattern corresponding to a footprint ofthe solder balls 22 of package 12 as well as a footprint of surfacemount pads 24 of printed circuit board 14. Insulative member 16 withconverter socket terminals 18 is press-fit into a guide box 26 havingalignment members 28 along which the peripheral edges of IC package 12are guided so that solder balls 22 are aligned over converter socketterminals 18. In particular embodiments, insulative member 16 and guidebox 26 may be formed as a one-piece, integral unit.

Socket converter assembly 10 also includes a lower heat sink 30positioned between an upper surface 32 of insulative member 16 and anundersurface 34 (FIG. 8C) of IC package 12. Spaced fins 36 extendradially from a central body 38 (FIG. 2) of the lower heat sink. Lowerheat sink 30 includes a ball member 40 sized and shaped to be receivedwithin a corresponding concave-shaped cavity 42 (FIGS. 2 and 3) formedon upper surface 32 of insulative member 16. Lower heat sink 30 providesa thermal path from undersurface 34 of IC package 12 to an upper surface45 of heat sink 30 for dissipating heat generated within IC package 12.Ball member 40 and cavity 42 serve to provide a ball and socket jointfor allowing heat sink 30 to swivel and tilt at least 10° in anydirection. Thus, as will be described in greater detail below, when ICpackage 12 is positioned over and into contact with lower heat sink 30,the heat sink can swivel and tilt to compensate for irregularities andlack of coplanarity between upper surface 62 and under surface 34 of ICpackage 12. The ball and socket joint arrangement, therefore, maximizessurface-to-surface contact between lower heat sink 30 and IC package 12,thereby improving heat transfer between the surfaces and providing amore efficient heat sink.

Referring to FIG. 3, insulative support member 16 also includes openings46, positioned between cavity 42 and array of holes 20, for providingairflow access to the undersurface of lower heat sink 30.

Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 2, socket converter assembly 10 alsoincludes a hold-down cover 50 for securing the IC package 12 into thesocket converter assembly. Cover 50 includes a pair of opposite walls 52having tab members 54 which engage recessed portions 56 along theunderside of insulative member 16. As will be described in greaterdetail below, in some embodiments, a stiffening member 63 formed of arigid material (e.g., aluminum) may be positioned between cover 50 andIC package 12. Hold-down cover 50 includes a threaded thru-hole 58 whichthreadingly receives an upper heat sink 60 to dissipate heat passingthrough stiffening member 63 from an upper surface 62 of IC package 12.A slot 66 formed in the heat sink facilitates threading the heat sinkwithin the cover, for example, with a screwdriver or coin. Otherlatching mechanisms (e.g., clips or catches) may also be used to secureIC packages within the socket converter assembly. It is also appreciatedthat other heat sink arrangements, including those with increasedsurface area (e.g. heat sinks with fans), may be substituted for thefinned version shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In certain lower powerapplications, upper heat sink 60 may not be required with only cover 50providing the downward compressing force to IC package 12.

Stiffening member 63 resembles a box having a cavity 65 defined byperipheral walls 67 for receiving body portion 13 of IC package 12. Asdescribed in greater detail below, in conjunction with FIGS. 8A-8C,stiffening member 63 relieves stress applied to body portion 13 byconveying the downward force applied by cover 50 to peripheral wallswhich, in turn, transfers the force to peripheral region 15 of ICpackage 12 (FIGS. 1 and 8C).

Referring to FIG. 4, each converter socket terminal 18 includes a femalesocket 70 positioned within one of the array of holes 20 of insulativemember 16. Female socket 70 includes a solder ball 72 pre-attached(e.g., by soldering) to its bottom end 74 to provide an identical matingcondition to surface mount pads 24 as would have been the case had ICpackage 12 been connected directly to the printed circuit board 14.Solder balls 72 are eventually soldered to corresponding surface mountpads 24 of circuit board 14. Positioned within the interior of femalesocket 70 is a contact spring 76 press-fit within the interior and upperend of the female socket.

Each contact spring 76 includes spring leaves 78 attached atcircumferentially spaced points of an upper end of a barrel 79. Contactspring 76 is sized to receive a male terminal 80 which passes throughbarrel 79 to frictionally engage spring leaves 78. Contact springs ofthis type are commercially available from Advanced Interconnections,West Warwick R.I. or other stamping outfits providing such contactsprings (e.g., in an open-tooling arrangement). Spring leaves 78 providea "wiping", reliable electrical contact to the male terminal pins byapplying a frictional force in a direction substantially transverse tothe longitudinal axis of the male terminals sufficient to ensure goodelectrical contact. A more detailed description of converter socketterminal 18 and its parts is found in co-pending application Ser. No.08/694,740 which is assigned to the assignee of the present inventionand incorporated herein by reference.

Each male terminal 80 has a head 82 adapted to receive a correspondingball 22 of the IC package 12 and a pin 84, thereby forming an electricalconnection between ball 22 of package 12 and solder ball 72 of convertersocket terminal 18. Head 82 has a concave upper surface 87 foraccommodating the rounded shape of solder ball 22

Referring to FIG. 5, in an alternative embodiment, concave upper surface87 includes a relatively sharp projection 85 disposed concentrically onthe upper surface of the head. Projection 85 is used to pierce the outersurface of the IC package's solder balls 22 which, due to exposure tothe atmosphere, may have a layer of oxidation. Projection 85 ispositioned at the lowest point within upper surface 87 with the tip ofthe projection substantially below the plane defined by the outerperipheral edge of head 82. Thus, projection 85 is protected duringtumbling operations, commonly performed on machined parts to removesharp and irregular edges. Other approaches for improving the electricalconnection between solder balls 22 and socket terminal 18 may be usedincluding the use of particle interconnection (PI) contacts. Asdescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,083,697 (incorporated by reference),particle interconnection contacts include relatively hard metallizedparticles deposited in a soft metal layer such that they protrude fromthe surface of the contact. When a second contacting surface (e.g.,ball) is compressively brought into contact with the PI contact, thehard particles penetrate any oxides and contamination present on thecontacting surface. PI contacts minimize the resistance between thecontacts, particularly after repeated insertions. Alternatively, adendritic growth process may be used to improve the conductivity betweencontacts. Head 82 of each male terminal 80 also includes a V-groove 92used to capture a relatively thin polymeric sheet 94 made, for examplefrom Kapton® (a product of E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Co., Wilmington,Del.).

Referring to FIG. 6, sheet 94 has a thickness of about 5 mils andincludes openings 96 sized slightly smaller than the diameter of theheads 82. This arrangement maintains male terminals 80 together inproper spaced relationship so that the pins can be easily aligned overand inserted into female sockets 70. Sheet 94 also prevents tilting ofthe pins which can cause electrical shorting. Sheet 94 also includes anopening 98 to allow heat sink 30 to be retained in insulative member 16.

Referring to FIG. 7, an upper end 99 of heat sink 30 includes a bevelledupper peripheral edge 100 which is received by opening 98. Opening 98 insheet 94 is sized to be slightly smaller than upper end 99 of heat sink30 and has sufficient flexibility for allowing it to be fitted aroundthe upper end of the heat sink.

Each of pins 84 are received within corresponding contact springs 76with spring leaves 78 configured to provide a lateral force, generallytransverse to the longitudinal axis of pins 84, thereby frictionallyengaging outer surfaces of the pins.

In one embodiment, the lower end of pin 84 includes a flattened head 99having a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of pin 84 so thatafter head 99 passes through spring leaves 78 of contact spring 76, maleterminal 80 is captured within female socket 70.

Metallic coiled springs 102 are loosely positioned within the interiorsof each of female sockets 70 and provide an upward force to the lowerends of pins 84. As mentioned earlier, spring leaves 78 of contactsprings 76 provide a sufficient amount of lateral frictional forcegenerally transverse to the longitudinal axis of the pins, to ensure areliable electrical contact to pins 84 of male terminals 80. However,when hold-down cover 50 is removed from insulative member 16, guide box26 and IC package 12, metallic coiled springs 102 expand causing each ofmale terminals 80 to release and extend to their most upper verticalposition within female sockets 70. Thus, it is important that coiledsprings 102 provide an upward force to male terminal pins 80 thatovercomes the frictional force, transverse to the upward force, appliedby spring leaves 78. The upward force of coiled springs 102 alsominimizes the risk of pins 84 "sticking" within corresponding femalesockets 70.

FIGS. 8A-8C illustrate the operation of socket converter assembly 10.Referring to FIG. 8A, heat sink 30 is positioned within sheet 94, withball member 40 seated within cavity 42 of insulative member 16. Theheight and pitch of upper peripheral edge 100 is selected to initiallycapture heat sink 30 within insulative member 16 prior to IC package 12being seated in its final position within socket converter assembly 10.

Referring to FIG. 8B, IC package 12 is positioned within guide box 26using alignment members 28 of guide box 26, and over insulative member16 with solder balls 22 of IC package 12 resting on concave uppersurface 87 of male terminals 80 In this position, male terminals 80vertically extend from contact springs 76 to their greatest degree.

Referring to FIG. 8C, cover 50 is slid over insulative member 16, guidebox 26, stiffening member 63, and IC package 12. Upper heat sink 60 isthen rotated within cover 50 using slot 66 until the upper heat sinkcontacts stiffening member 63. Further rotation of heat sink 60 appliesa downward force to stiffening member 63 which, in turn, transfers theforce to peripheral region 15 of IC package 12, thereby causing maleterminal pins 84 to extend within female sockets 70 and against the biasof spring coils 102. Thus, electrical interconnections are completedfrom each of solder balls 22 of IC package 12 to corresponding pads 24of board 14, after solder balls 72 have been soldered to pads 24. WhenIC package 12 is lowered by the compressing force applied by upper heatsink 60, sheet 94 is also lowered and moves away from the upper end ofupper peripheral edge 100 allowing heat sink 30 to freely swivel withincavity 42 of insulative member 16. At the same time, the downward forceapplied by upper heat sink 60 causes IC package 12 to be compressedagainst upper surface 45 of lower heat sink 30. Ball member 40 of lowerheat sink 30 is able to swivel and tilt within cavity 42 of insulativemember 16 to maximize contact between upper surface 45 of lower heatsink 30 and lower surface 34 of IC package 12.

Raising upper heat sink 60 from cover 50 removes the downward forceapplied to IC package 12 with spring coils 102 returning male terminalpins 84 to their fully extended vertical position of FIG. 8B. With upperheat sink 60 in its raised position, cover 50 can be removed to allow,for example, substituting a different IC package within the BGAconverter socket assembly. The likelihood that one or more of maleterminal pins 84 becoming stuck within female socket 70 is minimizedbecause the pins are "ganged" together by polymeric sheet 94 whichassists in ensuring that all of the pins return to their verticallyextended position and at a consistent height.

It is also important to note that each time an IC package is securedwithin socket converter assembly 10, pins 84 of male terminals 80 are"wiped" against spring leaves 78 of contact spring 76 to removeoxidation and ensure a reliable electrical connection therebetween.

Other embodiments are within the following claims. For example, theinvention is applicable to other socket and adapter assemblies.

Referring to FIG. 9, an intercoupling assembly 120 includes many of thesame features as socket converter assembly 10 of FIGS. 1-7 and 8A-8C.For example, intercoupling assembly 120 includes an upper heat sink 121and a socket assembly 122 having a concave-shaped cavity 124 forreceiving a ball member 126 of a lower heat sink 128. Socket assembly122 also includes an array of socket terminals 130 similar to socketterminals 18 of FIG. 2, except that coiled springs are not positionedwithin the socket terminals. Unlike the above described embodiment,intercoupling assembly also includes an adapter assembly 132 forsupporting an array of male terminal pins 134 which are received withincorresponding socket terminals 130 of socket assembly 122.

In this particular embodiment, lower heat sink 128 is of increasedheight to permit greater dissipation of heat. Thus, the height ofintercoupling assembly 120 is also increased. In order to accommodatethe relatively tall lower heat sink, the height of sidewalls 136 of acover 138, is increased in proportion to the height of heat sink 128. Incertain embodiments, the height of the sidewalls and the height ofsocket terminals 130 can both be increased to accommodate a tall lowerheat sink. The increased length of socket terminals 130 has theadditional benefit of providing greater heat dissipation through thesocket terminals themselves as well as through solder balls 140preattached to the terminals.

Referring to FIG. 10, a BGA package 140 may include additional solderballs 142, independent of solder balls 143, electrically isolated fromthe internal circuitry (not shown) within the BGA package. Rather,additional solder balls 142 serve as miniature heat sinks fordissipating heat generated within BGA package 140. In theseapplications, a lower heat sink 144 may have a recess 146 formed in itsupper surface so that contact between the lower heat sink 144 and thoseportions of the undersurface of BGA package 140 is maintained when anupper heat sink 148 is lowered to sandwich IC package 12. In thesandwiched position, solder balls 142 are positioned within recess 146and provide a thermal path to lower heat sink 144.

It is also important to appreciate that use of a lower heat sink isbeneficial for IC packages enclosing integrated circuits mounted in boththe "chip-up" and "chip-down" arrangements, particularly, when both alower and an upper heat sink is used to sandwich the IC packagetherebetween.

Still further embodiments are supported by the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An intercoupling component for electricallyconnecting electrical contacting areas of an integrated circuit packageto corresponding connection regions of a substrate, the intercouplingcomponent comprising:a package support member including a plurality ofopenings extending from an upper surface to an opposite lower surface ofthe support member, the openings located in a pattern corresponding to apattern of the contacting areas of the integrated circuit package; aplurality of contact terminals disposed within associated openings ofthe package for electrically connecting the contacting areas of theintegrated circuit package to the corresponding connection regions ofthe substrate; and a heat sink, removable and replaceable within thepackage support member, the heat sink having a first surface forcontacting a first surface of the integrated circuit package.
 2. Theintercoupling component of claim 1 further comprising a pivotingmechanism to allow the first surface of the heat sink to maintainflat-to-flat contact with the first surface of the integrated circuitpackage.
 3. The intercoupling component of claim 2 wherein a secondsurface of the heat sink includes a projecting member and an adjoiningsurface of the support member includes a depression sized and shaped toreceive the projecting member.
 4. The intercoupling component of claim 3wherein the depression is concave-shaped and the projecting member isrounded.
 5. The intercoupling component of claim 1 wherein the firstsurface of the heat sink is an upper surface of the heat sink, and thefirst surface of the integrated circuit package is a lower surface ofthe package.
 6. The intercoupling component of claim 5 wherein thepackage support member includes a central region within which the heatsink is disposed, the plurality of openings disposed along an outerperiphery of the central region.
 7. The intercoupling component of claim5 further comprising a retaining member positioned to apply a downwardforce on the integrated circuit package.
 8. The intercoupling componentof claim 7 further comprising a rigid member positioned between theretaining member and integrated circuit package, the rigid member havingperipheral sidewalls which contact peripheral regions of the integratedcircuit package.
 9. The intercoupling component of claim 7 wherein theretaining member includes a second heat sink having a surface contactingthe upper surface of the integrated circuit package.
 10. Theintercoupling component of claim 5 wherein the package support memberincludes at least one aperture for providing air flow to the lowersurface of the heat sink.
 11. The intercoupling component of claim 5further comprising an electrically insulative locator sheet including anaperture extending therethrough from an upper surface to an oppositelower surface of the locator sheet, the aperture positioned and sized toengage an upper peripheral portion of the heat sink.
 12. Theintercoupling component of claim 11 wherein the electrically insulativelocator sheet includes openings extending therethrough from an uppersurface to an opposite lower surface of the insulative locator sheet,the openings located in a pattern corresponding to a pattern of thecontact terminals, the openings sized to allow the contact terminals topass through the upper and lower surfaces of associated openings,whereby the contact terminals are aligned with associated connectionregions having a pattern corresponding to a pattern of the contactterminals.
 13. The intercoupling component of claim 11 wherein thelocator sheet is a polyimide film.
 14. The intercoupling component ofclaim 5 wherein each of the contact terminals includes:a socket bodyhaving an upper end with an opening and a lower end configured tocontact the corresponding connection region of the printed circuitboard.
 15. The intercoupling component of claim 14 wherein each of thecontact terminals further includes:a pin having an upper end adapted tocontact the electrical contacting area of the integrated circuit packageand a lower end configured to be inserted within the opening of thesocket body.
 16. The intercoupling component of claim 15 furthercomprising an adapter assembly disposed over the package support member,the adapter assembly including an electrically insulative support memberhaving a plurality of holes extending from an upper surface to anopposite lower surface of the electrically insulative support member,the holes located in a pattern corresponding to a pattern of the contactterminals, each pin of the contact terminal disposed within anassociated hole of the electrically insulative support member package.17. The intercoupling component of claim 15 wherein the contactterminals further include:a contact spring, disposed within a first endof the opening of the socket body, to receive and apply a frictionalforce sufficient to retain the lower end of the pin within the openingof the socket body; and a resilient member, disposed within a second,opposite end of the opening, to apply, to the lower end of the pin andin response to a downward force applied to the pin, an upward forcesufficient to overcome the frictional force of the contact spring. 18.An intercoupling component for electrically connecting electricalcontacting areas of an integrated circuit package to correspondingconnection regions of a substrate, the intercoupling componentcomprising:a package support member including a plurality of openingsextending from an upper surface to an opposite lower surface of thesupport member, the openings located in a pattern corresponding to apattern of the contacting areas of the integrated circuit package; aplurality of contact terminals disposed within associated openings ofthe package for electrically connecting the contacting areas of theintegrated circuit package to the corresponding connection regions ofthe substrate; a heat sink supported on the package support member andhaving a first surface for contacting a first surface of the integratedcircuit package; and a pivoting mechanism supporting the heat sink andallowing the first surface of the heat sink to maintain flat-to-flatcontact with the first surface of the integrated circuit package. 19.The intercoupling component of claim 18 wherein a second surface of theheat sink includes a projecting member and an adjoining surface of thesupport member includes a depression sized and shaped to receive theprojecting member.
 20. The intercoupling component of claim 19 whereinthe depression is concave-shaped and the projecting member is rounded.21. The intercoupling component of claim 19 further comprising aretaining member positioned to apply a downward force on the integratedcircuit package.
 22. The intercoupling component of claim 21 furthercomprising a rigid member positioned between the retaining member andintegrated circuit package, the rigid member having peripheral sidewallswhich contact peripheral regions of the integrated circuit package. 23.The intercoupling component of claim 21 wherein the retaining memberincludes a second heat sink having a surface contacting the uppersurface of the integrated circuit package.
 24. The intercouplingcomponent of claim 19 wherein the package support member includes atleast one aperture for providing air flow to the lower surface of theheat sink.